HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 136

(By Delegate Hill and Delegate Pack)

[Introduced February 29, 2020]

Requesting a study to present a plan for the combination of the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine.

Whereas, the education pathways are similar, in that D.O.s and M.D.s learn how to diagnose, treat, and prevent diseases and injuries and, as a result, they receive much of the same training, including: four years of medical school after earning a bachelor’s degree, and a residency program lasting one to seven years after completing medical school; and

Whereas, licensees fund both boards duplicitously; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That the Joint Committee on Government and Finance is hereby requested to conduct a study to present a plan for the combination of the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine; and, be it

Further Resolved, that the Joint Committee on Government and Finance report to the Legislature, on the first day of the regular session, 2021, on its findings, conclusions and recommendations together with drafts of any legislation to effectuate its recommendations; and, be it

Further Resolved, that the expenses necessary to conduct this study, to prepare a report and to draft necessary legislation be paid from legislative appropriations to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance.